Moving home? Take your rate with you — don’t pay to break your mortgage.
Porting moves your existing mortgage and its rate onto your new property, so a great rate you locked in years ago doesn’t get left behind — and you skip the break penalty.
Keep your locked-in rateSkip the break penaltyPort-and-increase blendsRe-qualify on new homeMind the porting windowWe coordinate timing
You locked in a great rate a few years ago, and now you’re moving. Your bank would happily break your mortgage, charge you a penalty, and re-write you at today’s higher rates. Porting avoids all of that — it lifts your existing mortgage, rate and all, and sets it down on your new property. If your new home costs more and you need a bigger mortgage, ‘port-and-increase’ blends your old rate with new money at current rates, so you only pay today’s rate on the new portion. The catch is timing and re-qualifying: get those right and porting can save you thousands.
What you get
Why Canadians choose Mortgage Squad Advisors.
Carry your existing (often lower) rate onto your new property
Avoid the break penalty you’d pay to discharge and re-borrow
Port-and-increase blends your old rate with new funds at today’s rate
Keep your existing amortization and terms where you want to
Often cheaper than refinancing into an entirely new mortgage
We confirm whether your specific mortgage is actually portable before you rely on it
We manage the porting window so sale and purchase line up in time
Re-qualification handled — income and credit are re-checked on the new home
If porting isn’t the cheapest route, we’ll show you the refinance math instead
All lender + broker fees disclosed in writing upfront
Maya · 24/7 AI advisor
Question about mortgage porting? Maya answers instantly in 50+ languages.
We confirm your mortgage is portable (most fixed mortgages are; some variables and rate specials aren’t) and compare porting against simply breaking and refinancing. We factor your current rate, balance, the new purchase price, and any penalty so you see which path costs less.
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Re-qualify on the new home
Porting still means qualifying on the new property — the lender re-checks your income, credit, and the new home’s value, and if you’re borrowing more, blends in the additional funds at current rates. We package the file so the port and any increase approve cleanly.
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Coordinate the timing
Porting has a window — many lenders require the new purchase to close the same day as the sale, or within a set number of days. We map your sale and purchase dates against your lender’s porting rules so you don’t accidentally trigger the penalty by closing too far apart.
What does porting a mortgage actually mean — and why does it matter so much right now?
Porting means lifting your existing mortgage — the same rate, the same remaining term — off the home you’re selling and setting it down on the home you’re buying. You don’t discharge the loan and start fresh; you carry the deal forward. That matters enormously today because so many Canadians are still holding pandemic-era rates well under 3%. If you locked in a five-year fixed in 2020 or 2021, that rate is now worth real money — and breaking the mortgage to move would hand it back to the lender, plus a penalty. Porting protects it. The lender keeps your rate alive on the new property, so the cheapest mortgage on the market — the one you already have — moves with you. We confirm your specific product is portable before you rely on it, then weigh it against a refinance so you choose the cheaper path on real numbers.
Port or break — when does keeping my old rate beat just taking today’s pricing?
This is a math question, not a rule of thumb. Breaking a fixed mortgage triggers a prepayment penalty — usually the greater of three months’ interest or an interest rate differential (IRD) — which on a low-rate, long-term mortgage can run into five figures. Porting sidesteps that penalty entirely because the mortgage is never broken; it’s relocated. The rule of thumb: if your existing rate is lower than what’s available now, porting almost always wins, because you keep cheap money and avoid the penalty. If today’s rates have fallen below yours, breaking and refinancing might win even after the penalty — but that’s the exception, not the norm, in a higher-rate market. We run both scenarios with your actual rate, balance, penalty, and new purchase price, and a penalty estimate so the recommendation rests on dollars, not assumptions.
What is port-and-increase, and how is the blended rate calculated?
If your next home costs more and you need a bigger mortgage, you don’t lose your old rate on the increase — you blend. Port-and-increase keeps your existing balance at your original (often low) rate and adds the new money at today’s rate, then weaves the two into a single ‘blended rate.’ The blend is weighted by dollars: a large old balance at a low rate barely moves when you add a smaller chunk of new money, while a big increase pulls the blended rate closer to current pricing. So if most of your mortgage is your old low-rate balance, your blended rate stays well below market. Some lenders blend-and-extend (resetting your term) and some blend-to-term (keeping it); the structure changes your payment and your next renewal date. We model the blend so you see the exact rate and payment before you commit — no surprises at signing.
How does timing work — same-day move versus selling and buying weeks apart?
Porting lives or dies on dates. The cleanest version is a simultaneous port: you sell and buy on the same day, the mortgage moves straight across, and nothing is ever broken. But life rarely closes that neatly. Most lenders also allow a port with a gap — you sell first, then buy within a set porting window, commonly 30 to 120 days depending on the lender. Close inside that window and your rate is preserved; drift past it and the port collapses into a break, penalty and all. The window length, and whether they bridge the gap, vary widely — which is exactly why the lender you’re with matters. At porting you also re-qualify on the new property. We map your sale and purchase dates against your lender’s specific rules, and where there’s a gap we line up bridge financing so you’re not stranded between closings.
What are the catches — and why check before I list my home?
Porting isn’t automatic, and three catches trip people up. First, you re-qualify: the lender re-checks your income, credit, debt ratios, and the new home’s appraised value, and you must pass the stress test again — so if your income dropped or your debt rose since you first borrowed, the port can be denied. Second, not every lender ports the same way; windows, blend methods, and eligible property types differ, and a few discounted ‘no-frills’ products and certain variable mortgages don’t port at all. Third, assuming wrong is expensive — discover a non-portable mortgage after you’ve firmed up an offer and you’re stuck paying the break penalty. That’s the broker advantage: we work with 100+ lenders and know which ones port cleanly, we confirm your exact product before you list, and every lender and broker fee is disclosed in writing — in any of 50+ languages. Start the conversation early, before you list or offer.
FAQ
Common questions, answered.
Don’t see yours? Ask Maya — instant answer, any time.
What does it mean to port a mortgage?
Porting means moving your existing mortgage — the same rate, and usually the same remaining term — from your current home to a new one when you sell and buy. Instead of breaking the mortgage (and paying a penalty) and taking out a brand-new one at today’s rates, you carry your existing deal forward. It’s especially valuable when your locked-in rate is lower than what’s available now.
Is my mortgage portable?
Most fixed-rate mortgages from major lenders are portable, but not all — some variable-rate mortgages and certain discounted ‘no-frills’ rate specials are not. The terms are in your mortgage agreement, and they vary by lender. We’ll confirm your exact product’s portability before you count on it, because assuming wrong can be an expensive surprise.
What is ‘port and increase’?
If your new home costs more and you need to borrow additional money, port-and-increase keeps your existing balance at your old rate and adds the new funds at today’s rate — then blends them into a single rate (a ‘blended rate’). You get the benefit of your low original rate on most of the mortgage and only pay current rates on the new portion. We calculate the blended rate so you know your new payment.
Do I still have to qualify?
Yes. Porting isn’t automatic — the lender re-qualifies you on the new property: your income, credit, debt ratios, and the new home’s appraised value all get re-checked, and you must pass the stress test. If your situation has changed (lower income, more debt), that can affect the port, so we review it before you firm up your offer.
What’s the porting window — and why does it matter?
Most lenders only let you port if your sale and new purchase close within a certain window — sometimes the same day, sometimes within 30, 90, or 120 days, depending on the lender. Close too far apart and you can lose the ability to port and get hit with the break penalty instead. Coordinating these dates is one of the main things we manage on a porting file.
Is porting always cheaper than refinancing?
Not always. If today’s rates are lower than your existing rate, breaking and refinancing might actually be better even with a penalty. If your rate is lower than today’s, porting usually wins. We run both scenarios with your real numbers — current rate, balance, penalty, new amount — and recommend the cheaper one rather than assuming.
What if I’m buying a cheaper home and need a smaller mortgage?
You can usually port a portion of your mortgage and pay down the rest, but watch out — paying down more than your annual prepayment privilege allows can trigger a partial penalty. We calculate your prepayment room so you reduce the balance without an unexpected charge.
Can I port to a different type of property?
Generally you can port to another residential property you’ll occupy, but moving to something unusual — a rental, a recreational property, or a very rural home — may not fit your lender’s porting rules. We confirm the new property qualifies for the port before you commit to it.
How far ahead should I start?
As early as possible — ideally before you list or make an offer. Porting depends on timing and re-qualifying, and knowing your numbers up front shapes how you structure your sale and purchase. A quick conversation early can save you from accidentally triggering a penalty or missing the porting window.
